Director of Development for Corporate & Foundation Relations

UMass Boston
As Greater Boston’s only public research university and the most diverse university in New England, the University of Massachusetts Boston is a springboard to a more prosperous future for its 16,000 students; a gateway to intellectual, practical, and artistic discovery in all branches of knowledge; and the primary lever for higher education equity in Massachusetts.

Over the next ten years and beyond, we on the UMass Boston University Advancement team will partner with philanthropic individuals and organizations to bring this strategic vision—and its impacts on our community and world—to life. Our fundraising organization is composed of 32 colleagues, and we are growing in both size and impact. Today we seek an experienced and creative corporate and foundation relations professional to help our dynamic, mission-minded development team inspire prospective donors to invest in the success of UMass Boston’s students and faculty.

General Summary: 

The Director of Development for Corporate & Foundation Relations is a mid-level position in University Advancement, reporting directly to the Associate Vice Chancellor for Corporate and Foundation Relations. The position will play a key role on the CF&R team, informing strategy and increasing the support that corporations, private foundations and organizations provide to UMass Boston.  The main thrust of this position is to bolster the relationships with, and proposals for funding to, major corporations and foundations.  This dynamic candidate will work closely with deans, department chairs, key research faculty, and leaders of Centers and Institutes on the development of creative and formal proposals to garner support to establish scholarships, stipends for graduate research, and faculty support, among other areas. Up to 50% of this position’s time will be spent assisting UMass Boston Centers and Institutes in fundraising for their important work.

Examples of Duties: 

Serve as a lead colleague who develops relationships with, and then crafts and advances enticing and impactful proposal to, major corporations and foundations, while working closely with university leaders and key faculty to develop interdisciplinary and intradisciplinary approaches;

Focus attention on campus-wide goals and the Chancellor’s newly-developed strategic plan in order to drive successful proposals to address these university priorities;

Work closely with the Associate Vice Chancellor for Corporate and Foundation Relations and Assistant Vice Chancellor for Corporate and Foundation Relations to develop and execute a Corporate and Foundation fundraising plan, one that may lead into a nine-figure comprehensive campaign;

Supervise 1-3 work-study students.

Assist C&FR with RFP research, communications and coordination, assist with limited submission coordination, and coordinate proposal development and gift/grant tracking; and

Act as a mentor and a co-solicitor in partnership with the University’s Centers and Institutes, spending up to 50% of time on this area.

Qualifications: 

Bachelor’s degree is required, and a Master’s Degree is preferred.  The candidate must have minimum of 10 years of demonstrated progressive experience in a fundraising environment with a proven ability to engage donors, foundations, corporations and/or government grant organizations through enticing proposals that secure five and six-figure+ commitments within a public or private higher education institution or nonprofit environment is mandatory. It is also expected that the ED for CF&R will have a thorough understanding of and experience in comprehensive campaigning from organizations at the $100 million-plus level. 

Additional requirements and/or expectations are:

Ability to discover corporate and foundation funding opportunities, develop relationships with those organizations as well as with key colleagues on the UMass Boston campus, and turn those potential funding ideas into polished and successful proposals that garner philanthropic support;

Demonstrative success in uniting disparate university voices from schools and colleges, to programs, centers and/or institutes into interdisciplinary ideas that elevate smaller proposals into larger and more comprehensive levels of impact and support;

Ability to drive elevated solicitation strategies while adhering to sound processes and procedures in order to formulate and achieve performance metrics with measurable impact in multiple areas in an overall high performing development shop;

A clear understanding of modern university campaigning at the nine-figure-plus level and demonstrated success in helping close five and six-figure level gifts that bolster a comprehensive campaign; 

Ability to perform well under pressure, and adept to change in a fast-paced environment;

State of the art oral and written communication skills as well some proposal design work;

Comfortable with delivering time-sensitive projects; and,

Out-of-state travel to major cities where needed.

Application Instructions: 

Please apply online with your resume, cover letter and list of three professional references.

Review of candidates will begin following the application closing date. 

Only Internal candidates in the Professional Staff Bargaining Unit will be considered during the first 10 business days of the posting.  All other candidates will be considered after that period. 

Salary Ranges for the appropriate Pay Grade can be found at the following link: 

Grade: 34

Salary Ranges

This is an exempt union position.

All official salary offers must be approved by Human Resources.

UMass Boston requires all employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and to confirm proof of their vaccination status. Exemptions from the vaccine requirement will be permitted only for qualifying religious or medical reasons. Regardless of vaccination status, you must wear a face covering in public indoor spaces on campus.

 

The University of Massachusetts Boston provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, disability, military status, genetic information, pregnancy or a pregnancy-related condition, or membership in any other legally protected class. The University of Massachusetts Boston complies with all applicable federal, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the university operates. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment.